About Professor Kumar
Kumar Venkataraman is a Professor of Finance and Maguire Chair in Energy Management at the Cox School of Business. He serves as the Academic Director of the Maguire Energy Institute and the Kyle Miller Energy Management program. He has a Ph.D. in Finance from Arizona State University. He was the Chairman of the Finance Department between 2012 and 2015.
Professor Venkataraman was a member of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Fixed Income Market Structure Advisory Committee (FIMSAC) between 2017 and 2021. The Committee made several recommendations to improve the efficiency and resiliency of the U.S. fixed income markets. Notably, Kumar was named among “The Best 40 B-School Profs Under the Age of 40” in the 2011 Poets & Quants ranking of Business School professors.
Research
Venkataraman specializes in the area of market microstructure and writes about financial market design; evaluation of trading strategies; and functioning of equity, fixed income, options, futures, swaps and and energy markets. His research has been published in top-tier academic journals, such as Journal of Finance, Journal of Financial Economics, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis and Review of Financial Studies, and featured in industry publications, such as The CFA Digest, in text books, and in the business press, including Wall Street Journal, Barrons, Financial Times, The Economist and Bloomberg News. He has an appointment as a visiting economist with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). He works on consulting and expert witness engagements and his consulting clients include, among others, the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). His research is frequently referenced by global central bankers and regulators and cited in regulatory filings on market design initiatives.
Teaching
Dr. Venkataraman teaches courses in the area of Investments and Energy Finance.
Personal
Married to Kalyani, and has two daughters, Anushka and Sanjana. Kumar enjoys reading books and playing tennis.
Honors
The Best 40 Business Professors Under the Age of 40, Poets and Quants ranking: 2011.
NASDAQ Best Paper Award in Market Microstructure, Financial Management Association (international): 2010, 2013, 2019.
Best Paper Award (2nd Place), 20th Conference on the Theories and Practices of Securities and Financial Markets (international): 2012.
Best Paper Award, Multinational Financial Society (international): 2015.
Gerald J. Ford Senior Research Fellowship (SMU): 2008.
Research Excellence Award (Cox School): 2004, 2013, 2016, 2017.
Altshuler Distinguished Teaching Professor (SMU): 2017 - 2019.
Boghetich Family Distinguished Award for Teaching (Cox School): 2010, 2015.
Annual Teaching Award in BBA or MBA Program (Cox School): 2007, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2017.
Education
1990 - 1994
Master of Management Sciences (Finance)
Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, India.
1995 - 2000
Ph. D. in Business Administration (Finance)
Arizona State University
Contact Information
Office Phone: 214-768-7005
Email: kumar@mail.cox.smu.edu
Office: 15th floor, Expressway Towers, East Campus, Southern Methodist University.